Community Round Table POSTPONED

Unfortunately, the Cobble Hill Association's Community Roundtable with State Senator Daniel Squadron, that was to be held at 7:30 PM on Monday, November 23rd, must be Re-Scheduled.

The State Legislature is being called back next week to vote on the state budget so State Senator Daniel Squadron will not be available. We are re-scheduling the Roundtable and will let you know the new date as soon as possible.

Sorry for the inconvenience!

Community Round Table with Senator Squadron

The Cobble Hill Association Kicks off its Community Roundtable Series with State Senator Daniel Squadron

7:30 PM on Monday, November 23rd
@ Christ Church, at the corner of Clinton and Kane Streets

This will be the first of a series of "Community Roundtable" meetings hosted by the Cobble Hill Association to provide an opportunity for you to meet directly with your elected officials. We are honored that our first guest will be State Senator Daniel Squadron. This will be an informal meeting where you can discuss any issue or concern directly with Senator Squadron.

"These meetings will provide an opportunity to meet directly with your elected officials to discuss any issue or concern," said Roy Sloane, president of the CHA.

This event is free of charge and is open to the public.

CHA / BGI Ride 2009

On an unseasonably perfect Sunday this past weekend, nearly 35 cyclists gathered for 2nd annual Cobble Hill Association/ Brooklyn Greenway Initiative Ride. With six marshals escorts, riders toured ten miles of Brooklyn's surrounding neighborhoods. The route included the brand new Sands Streets protected bike path, the paved stretch of Columbia Street's future Brooklyn Greenway, waterfront views of the city from the Brooklyn Cruise ship terminal, and a visit to the newly constructed pedestrian plaza at the Hoyt-Schermerhorn subway station. The ride also included two rest stops; first was at the Ikea Esplanade where Meg Fellerath from BGI spoke about the Brooklyn Greenway and second was on Livingston Street where Ryan Kuonen from the Street Memorials project spoke about ghost bikes as they related to cycling and pedestrian safety in the city. Big thanks to all Meg, Ryan, and all the marshals who helped, and a double thanks to Ryan Philips for snapping these great photos.
Want to see more pics from the ride? Check out the Cobble Hill Flickr pool.

Cobble Hill Association Fall General Meeting

Monday, November 9, at 7:30 pm @ Long Island College Hospital, 339 Hicks Street (at Atlantic Ave) at the Avram Conference Room A.

With New York City’s unemployment rate at a reported 8.9% and with under-employment estimated at 17%, many Cobble Hill residents have been affected by the economic downturn , especially with so many working in the fields of finance, media, and law that have been hard-hit. The Cobble Hill Association’s Fall General meeting will feature a panel discussion on coping strategies for this difficult economic environment.

Panelists:

William S. Ross, Director of Development Marketing, Halstead Property
Henry Zook, of BookCourt @ 161-163 Court Street
Michelle Manix, of Ted and Honey cafe @ 264 Clinton Street at Vernadah Place
Lauren Young, Personal Finance Editor of Business Week

About the Panel:

William S. Ross, Director of Development Marketing for Halstead Property, has over 25 years of real estate experience. An expert in both residential and commercial realty, Bill was the owner of William S. Ross Realty in Cobble Hill until he sold to Halstead. He is an expert on New York City's complicated zoning laws, and Landmarks Preservation regulations. Bill has been involved in many major building conversions and new developments where his ability to work with architects on floor plans and layouts and his understanding of the market is invaluable. Bill is a lifetime resident of Brownstone Brooklyn.

Henry Zook has co-owned BookCourt at 161 – 163 Court Street since 1981. Rated a 10 out of 10 by New York Magazine and voted the “Best Bookstore Expanding in the Face of a Vanishing Industry” by the Village Voice in their October 2009 “Best of New York” issue, the store is more than just a bookstore. Along with co-owner, Mary Gannett, and son Zack, Henry has created a destination where you can find an excellent selection of fiction, non-fiction and children’s books and literary magazines. The store offers readings from well-known authors - E.L. Doctorow and Jonathan Lethem among the writers featured in the past two months. There are weekly events for children and young adults including readings, story hours, and one of a kind events like a midnight release party for the last Harry Potter book. BookCourt has recently expanded to better serve their fans, ignoring the common wisdom that Barnes and Noble and Amazon are the only business model for book sellers.

Michelle Mannix, co-owner of Ted and Honey at 264 Clinton Street at Verandah Place, is a lifelong foodie who came to the culinary world after spending several years in corporate America working in human resources and marketing. After being laid off from her job as Director of Marketing Partnerships and Promotion for Loews Cineplex Entertainment, Michelle took her career in a different direction. She attended the New School for culinary arts, completing the Master Class in professional cooking, catering, and Italian. She was asked to be the assistant to the Chef Instructor in the next Master course. Michelle then worked as a line cook and prep cook in Danny Meyer’s Café 2 in the Museum of Modern Art. In 2008, she and her brother, Chris Jackson, opened Ted and Honey. It became such an instant hit that when they added a public rest room, New York Magazine listed it as “Brilliant” in their approval matrix! Michelle, her husband, and their new baby, Jackson, live down the block from Ted & Honey in Carroll Gardens.

Lauren Young is a department editor for BusinessWeek’s Personal Business section. She joined BusinessWeek in October 2003 after working as a senior writer at SmartMoney. Ms. Young also covered mutual funds for the Dow Jones Newswires and was a frequent contributor to The Wall Street Journal. Her articles have appeared in many publications including The New York Times, The Baltimore Sun, The Houston Chronicle, The Wall Street Journal Europe, USA Today, and T. Rowe Price Investor. She currently blogs about investing and parenting issues for BusinessWeek and is a frequent guest on major network television and radio programs. Ms. Young lives in Cobble Hill with her husband Jon Gordon, a patent lawyer, and her son Leo, who is in kindergarten at P.S. 29.

Cobble Hill Association November Newsletter

Read below for CHA recaps on the Halloween Parade, Book Swap, and upcoming Bike Ride, Fall General meeting, and more.

Fall General Meeting to Feature Panel Discussion, "Surviving the Economic Downturn in Cobble Hill"

With New York City's unemployment rate at a reported 8.9% and with under-employment estimated at 17%, many Cobble Hill residents have been affected by the economic downturn , especially with so many working in the fields of finance, media, and law that have been hard-hit. The Cobble Hill Association's Fall General meeting will feature a panel discussion on coping strategies for this difficult economic environment. It will be held on Monday, November 9, at 7:30 pm at Long Island College Hospital, 339 Hicks Street (at Atlantic Ave) at the Avram Conference Room A.Featured will be an expert on local real estate, William S. Ross, Director of Development Marketing, Halstead Property; co-owners of two successful neighborhood businesses, Henry Zook of BookCourt at 161-163 Court Street and Michelle Mannix of Ted & Honey cafe at 264 Clinton Street at Verandah Place; and Lauren Young, Personal Finance Editor, of BusinessWeek.

For detailed background about the Panelists, please read further here.

- $22 Million NY State Grant Will Assist Proposed Merger of Long Island College Hospital and SUNY-Downstate Medical Center

Governor David Patterson authorized a $22 million grant to Long Island College Hospital, a move that was interpreted as a show of support for LICH's proposed merger with SUNY- Downstate Medical Center, according to Dominick Stanzione, acting LICH President. Mr. Stanzione reported that negotiations between LICH and SUNY-Downstate continue. There have been ongoing discussions between various state and federal agencies to come up with a business plan that would reduce LICH’Äôs current malpractice premiums and increase its reimbursement rates.Murray Adams, former CHA president and co-founder of the Ad Hoc Committee for LICH, said Mr. Stanzione told their committee that "the financial picture at LICH has improved, but LICH is still a long way from break-even". LICH's finances may also be negatively impacted by new cuts in reimbursement rates effective December 1 and possible additional cuts arising from New York State’Äôs anticipated deficit. However, on a positive note, support by the area's elected officials allowed LICH to keep open their school-based clinics this fall.

- Cobble Hill Bike Ride to Meet Sunday, November 8 in Cobble Hill Park

The Cobble Hill Association and Brooklyn Greenway Initiative are hosting a 10-mile casual bike ride on Sunday, November 8 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. It will begin at Cobble Hill Park at Verandah Place and travel through Brooklyn Heights, Dumbo, the Columbia Waterfront District, Red Hook, and Carroll Gardens then loop back to Cobble Hill. There will be several scenic rest stops as the group rides along the mostly calm streets with some light vehicular traffic. Several bike marshals and a mechanic will accompany the group in case of urgent bike repairs Riders should bring helmets and observe all the proper rules of the road.There is no cost but space is limited to 50 riders maximum. Preference will be given to those who register ahead of time, as well as Cobble Hill Association members. Riders must RSVP to: cobblehillbikeride@gmail.com

- Halloween Parade Draws 4000 to Cobble Hill Park

Halloween has become as festive as Mardi Gras with a crowd estimated at 4000 participating in the Cobble Hill Association’Äôs parade and enjoying the scary decorations in Cobble Hill Park. Every block had people sitting on their stoops distributing candy to children who came from the neighborhood and beyond. One generous Clinton Street homeowner had treats for both young and old with candy for the kids and a mini keg of Heineken for adults.

Kudos to Melissa Glass, the Halloween Queen, for organizing the event, decorating the park, hiring the steel drum band, and putting everything back to normal before midnight. Additional thanks to David Black, Allen Scheuch who made the fabulous totem poles, helped with set-up, and spearheaded the cleanup, Peter La Bonte, Nicole from Congress Street, Liz Velikonja and her fourth- and fifth-grade sons Karl and Nicky, Captain Corey and the policemen from the 76th precinct for closing the parade route to traffic, Roy Sloane, and Jerry Armer.

To view more of Franklin Stone's photos from the event, check out the CHA flickr page.

- CHA Lobbying Efforts Result in Important Expansion of BQE Rehabilitation Project

Peter King, NYS DOT Project Manager, announced his agency's intention to expand the area of the BQE Rehabilitation project south to Hamilton Avenue-- subject to the concurrence of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). His announcement made at the October 21st meeting of the BQE Rehabilitation Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) appeared to be in response to lobbying by the CHA and community organizations. This means that the BQE Rehabilitation will now include all Atlantic Avenue entrances and exits and the BQE "ditch" rather than ending just before. Expansion of the project area also means that the primary study area will be expanded south at least as far as Hamilton Avenue and will include all of the neighborhoods west of the Gowanus Canal.

The BQE Triple Cantilever Roadway Reconstruction Project has the potential to be an infrastructure reconstruction project of truly unprecedented scale and extent. Our entire area could be profoundly impacted for the years required to complete the rehabilitation. Peter King and his team are considering an ambitious range of options to mitigate the potential impact including tolling strategies, a temporary outboard highway over the water and even more permanent solutions such as tunneling underneath downtown Brooklyn. You can learn more about the project and the planning effort at: http://www.nysdot.gov/bqedowntownbrooklyn

- Community Roundtable Meeting with State Senator Daniel Squadron Scheduled for November 23

The Cobble Hill Association is pleased to announce that the first in a series of "Community Roundtable" meetings will feature State Senator Daniel Squadron on Monday Nov. 23rd at 7:30 PM -- location to be announced. The "Community Roundtable" meetings will provide an opportunity for you to meet directly with your elected officials to discuss any topic and to communicate your concerns with them. Please save the date!

- First Cobble Hill Book Swap Was a Hit!

Despite a postponement and shortened hours, the first Cobble Hill Association Book Swap was a very successful event. Over 1000 books changed hands with the remainders donated to patients at Long Island College Hospital.

LICH librarian George reoirts that the book cart is getting great responses from patients and that the kid's books disappear the moment the clinic staff puts them out. In addition to the book swap, police from the 76th precinct registered bicycles and cell phones and LICH nurses took blood pressure readings and provided information about asthma. Organizers Judi Francis and Margaret Ablon thank all who participated and are planning another swap for this spring.

- Joanne Nicholas, editor

Cobble Hill Bike Ride 09

Come join the Cobble Hill Association and Brooklyn Greenway Initiative for the second annual...

COBBLE HILL BIKE RIDE

When: November 8th, 2009, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Where: Verandah Place at Cobble Hill Park
Cost: FREE, simply rsvp to cobblehillbikeride@gmail.com.
Space is limited to 50 riders maximum. Preference will be given to those who register ahead of time, as well as Cobble Hill Association members.

The Cobble Hill Association and Brooklyn Greenway Initiative are hosting a 10-mile casual bike ride that will start at Cobble Hill Park and pass through Brooklyn Heights, Dumbo, the Columbia Waterfront District, Red Hook, and Carroll Gardens then loop back to Cobble Hill.

There will be several scenic rest stops as we ride along mostly calm streets with some light vehicular traffic. Several Bike Marshals will travel alongside as well as a mechanic for any urgent bike repairs needed. It may be chilly so please dress accordingly, and know that riders should bring helmets and observe all the proper rules of the road.